Singapore’s imposition of targeted sanctions on four extremist Israeli settlers in the West Bank on Friday is unlikely to make much difference to them or to the Palestinians they torment. But given the close historical relationship between Singapore and Israel, it is an important sign of how isolated Israel is becoming on the world stage. |
The sanctions target four Israeli settlers for “egregious acts of extremist violence” against Palestinians in the West Bank. The men will be banned from doing business with Singaporean financial institutions and from traveling to Singapore. |
All of them are affiliated with the violent extremist organization Hilltop Youth, which organizes illegal settlement outposts in the occupied West Bank and uses them as bases from which to attack Palestinian villages. The four men have already been sanctioned by the European Union, and Hilltop Youth was previously sanctioned by the United States for violent acts including killings and mass arson, though that designation was reversed by President Donald Trump in January. |
Singapore’s announcement comes amid a wave of settler violence in the West Bank that has garnered widespread condemnation, even by senior Israeli officials who typically ignore or downplay such incidents. As we noted last week, the U.N. documented at least 260 violent settler attacks last month—the highest number since 2006. According to Israeli media, the perpetrators have not faced legal consequences except in the most extreme cases. |
When Singaporean Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan announced the new policy of targeted sanctions against far-right settlers in September, he also noted the country could reconsider its position on whether to recognize the state of Palestine. But the government stopped short of that step in its Friday announcement, saying only that it would recognize Palestine at the “appropriate time.” |
As two small and young states surrounded by larger neighbors, Israel and Singapore share a close bond based on a siege mentality, and their security ties stretch back decades. When Singapore became independent in 1965, its founding prime minister, Lee Kuan Yew, reached out to Israel for help building its military from scratch. Given the sensitivity of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict among Southeast Asian Muslims, including Singapore’s sizeable minority population of Malays, the team of advisers from the Israel Defense Forces were disguised as Mexicans. |
“As a newly-independent state with limited resources other than our people and sheer grit to rely on, Singapore needed Israel’s help to build up our armed forces,” Winston Choo, a former Singaporean defense chief who went on to serve as non-resident ambassador to Israel, wrote in 2019. “As it turned out, Israel also sought a friend in the region.” |
The two countries went on to build a close bilateral friendship, branching out from defense cooperation to other areas including investment, technology and education. In 2022, they upgraded their diplomatic relations and Singapore established a full embassy in Tel Aviv. |
But those close ties have gradually become strained since Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, sparked a devastating Israeli invasion of Gaza. Israel’s conduct in that war, which experts increasingly describe as a genocide against Palestinians—as well as the spike in violent attacks in the West Bank—have made it more difficult for Singapore to balance its historical connection to Israel with its commitment to upholding international law. |
Singapore’s decision to sanction Israeli settlers is also noteworthy given the country’s longstanding policy of mandating ethnic and religious harmony, which includes strict rules against any form of protest. Public discussions of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict are considered taboo, and permit applications for demonstrations are routinely denied due to authorities’ fear of “public disorder.” In fact, three women who recently organized a pro-Palestinian protest walk were arrested and prosecuted, though a judge acquitted them last month. |
Addressing parliament in September, Balakrishnan acknowledged the sanctions would not have much on-the-ground impact. Instead, he described them as “a statement of principle and _expression_ of disapproval.” |
“I’m not saying that we entered into sanctions lightly,” Balakrishnan clarified. “It is, for us, a major statement.” Indeed, coming from such a longstanding friend, the sanctions illustrate the extent to which Israel’s far-right government is undermining its own position in the world. |